Eelco de Goojer, a 38-year-old Dutch man who chose to be euthanized in 2016. De Goojer's death was controversial in part because he was physically healthy, though he suffered from psychiatric disorders. (Photo: FilmMoment/Jesse van Venrooij)

Euthanasia in the Netherlands [program]

In the first of a two-part series on euthanasia and
physician-assisted suicide, Global Journalist examines the issue in the Netherlands
– the first country to legalize euthanasia.

Over the past decade the number of Dutch choosing to have a
doctor end their lives voluntarily has climbed to nearly 7,000 per year, or
about 4 percent of all deaths in the country.

This includes physically healthy people with dementia and psychological disorders that haven’t responded to treatment. Though euthanasia retains broad public support in the country, as the range of people eligible has expanded, so too has criticism of the process in which it’s carried out.

On this edition of Global Journalist, a look at the Dutch experience and what lessons it holds for other countries grappling with physician-assisted suicide.

Joining the program:

*Bert de Gooijer, father of a physically-healthy 38-year-old man who chose to be euthanized in 2016

*Theo Boer, a professor of health care ethics at Protestant
Theological University